December 18, 2023
On AJP’s last weekend of competition before 2024, the organization went full-throttle to the shores of Brazil and promoted the AJP Tour João Pessoa International Jiu-Jitsu Championship 2023, welcoming athletes and fight fans to the Ginásio da UNIPÊ on Sunday, December 17th. With five fight areas set up in the venue, fighters from all ages, countries, and graduations made their way to the stage to put on one last great show, which was opened by some truly awe-inspiring displays of technique on three Para Jiu-Jitsu duels.
But it’s impossible to talk about the João Pessoa International without talking about Felipe Oliveira and Fabricio Gomes, two local black belts who went above and beyond in their campaigns and came out of the tournament with the coveted double gold. Representing Atrixion MMA, Felipe started his journey in the 77kg division, where he overcame Lucas Silva (PSLPB Cícero Costha) by scoring last in a 2-2 tie and then conquered his first title with a 3-0 score over Lucas Carvalho (Gracie Barra). With one medal down for the count, Felipe returned to the AJP mats and entered the Open Lightweight bracket, starting off with a submission over Hudson Brito (Alliance). In the final, Felipe once again ran into Lucas Carvalho and the ensuing battle took up the entirety of the regulated time, with Felipe once again coming out on top, this time by 2-0.
Meanwhile, Fabricio Gomes (South Zone Team) was a freight train and no one was able to stop him. The Brazilian, who started off by taking the 85kg division title, was tireless in his pursuit of the double gold and quickly found himself back into the fray, this time with the Open Heavyweight division in his sights. Despite facing tough opponents, Fabricio used his technical know-how to first overcome Jose Braga (Zr Team Association) by 8-0 and advance to the finals. In the gold round, Jose Neto stood ready to finally pump the brakes in his adversary’s advances and both fighters went at each other throughout the five minutes of regulated time. At the end of it all, Fabricio rose as the champion yet again, scoring 8-1 to defeat his opponent and take his rightful place atop the podium.
Check out the full results here!
